Nowadays there is a wide range of possible applications for autonomously operating mobile units. Just think in this respect of remote sensing probes, mobile units which operate in hazardous areas, self-propelled industrial vacuum cleaners, transporting vehicles in the production industry etc. To ensure that these autonomously operating self-propelled units have greatest possible freedom of movement and are flexible in use, it is often desirable and appropriate for these units first of all to mark and explore their working area. Until now, processes in which the working area is marked in advance have often been used (bar codes for laser triangulation, Wiklund, U., Anderson, U., Hyyppa, K., Gelders, L. F., "AGV navigation by angle measurements" Automated Guided Vehicle Systems, Proceedings of the 6th International Conference, AGVS-6, Brussels, Belgium 25-26 Oct. 1988, p. 199-212, Kempston, UK IFS Publications 1854230247; transponders, Hill, L., "Improvements in inductive communications for wire-guided AGVs", Automated Guided Vehicle Systems, Proceedings of the 7th International Conference, Technology for Tomorrow, Berlin, West Germany 13-14 Jun. 1989, p. 69-81 vi+160 1989, Bedford, UK IFS 1854230484; guide lines, Fahringer, B. J., "AGVs and automation: getting there", Production (USA) Vol 101, No 7, p 35-39, Jul. 1989, so that mobile systems can take their bearings from these marks. These processes all have the disadvantage that they are complicated and that they restrict the flexibility of use of the system.
A further known possibility is the use of complex sensory technology, by which landmarks present in the working area are extracted and serve as an orientation aid for the self-propelled autonomous system, Robins, M. P., "Free-ranging automatic guided vehicle System", GEC Rev. (GB), Vol 2, No 2, p. 129-132, 1986. In this case, the disadvantage is the very complex sensory technology and the necessity for the presence of landmarks in the vicinity of use. Further possibilities for exploring working areas and their marking are not known.